


Under Starry Skies Above

by colazitron



Category: Druck | SKAM (Germany)
Genre: 75 Dates In The Skam Universe, Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-31
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2020-10-04 08:33:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20468102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/colazitron/pseuds/colazitron
Summary: Matteo and David have been feeling a little dejected, so Matteo suggests they get away for a weekend trip.





	Under Starry Skies Above

**Author's Note:**

> I have a lot of feelings about traveling and Matteo and David traveling - and then a friend got me onto the idea of setting this fic in an HP setting. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> Title from "Don't Fence Me In".

Matteo can't sit still.

He can of course sit still, because he's not a child anymore, but every time he does have to sit still somewhere he feels jittery and wound up. His knee bounces, he taps his foot or chews on his lip just for something to do. And it's not that Matteo is generally a high energy person, he can usually sit still and do nothing with the best of them (he's lounging, thank you very much, Hans). But these past few weeks, as the days got markedly shorter, greyer, colder, Matteo's been feeling increasingly wound up.

And actually, he knows that David's been feeling it too. He can see it in the way David fidgets with his clothes, the way he comes home after a full day at his apprenticeship and isn't talking a mile a minute about all the wondrous things he learned and saw, treating Matteo to barely more than a “yeah, it was good” and an apologetic “I'm just tired, sorry”.

They're good about not taking things out on each other, but it still means they're both not as happy as they could be. They still stay over with each other more often than not regardless, because any time spent together is better than time not spent together, but it's just not the same thing. They go to sleep quiet and exhausted instead of teasing and laughing and chatting about any- and everything until either kissing and touching takes over, or the tiredness wins out and their slurred words taper off into whispered wishes of goodnight.

Matteo wants that back. The ease and the joy of how many of his days become good days – even amazing days – when David is around.

So when David sinks down onto the bed beside him, snuggling into Matteo's side a little after he comes back from his shower, he makes a decision.

“I want to go away,” he says.

“Away?” David asks, like he's not sure he understands the concept.

Matteo nods to no-one and wriggles an arm between David and the wall behind his bed, pulling David more snugly against his body.

“Yeah. Away,” he confirms.

David hums like he's considering it, and turns into Matteo's embrace a little more, getting comfortable and reaching across him with the arm not wedged between their bodies to lace his fingers through Matteo's. Matteo in turn rests their joined hands comfortably on his thigh and waits for him to say something more.

“Like, in general, or…?” David finally asks.

“No, like on a weekend trip. Soon. Tomorrow, if you want,” he says.

“Oh, you want to go away with me?” David teases, like there was ever any doubt Matteo wants to be exactly where David is at pretty much all times.

Matteo turns to bury his face in David's shower-damp hair and takes a moment to breathe in the scent of him and his hair potions.

“Of course with you,” he mumbles. He's pretty sure he can trust David to make out the words anyway.

“Where do you want to go?” David asks, indulgent.

“Anywhere,” Matte says. “I just feel like I'm going stir-crazy. I want to go everywhere with you, see the entire world.”

David shuffles around a little so he can look up at Matteo, meeting his gaze.

“The world is a big place,” he says. “That'll take a long time.”

“Yeah,” Matteo agrees with a nod. “So we'd better get started, right?”

David's smile softens into the warmth and comfort that Matteo has so dearly missed recently, and he leans up to nuzzle his nose against Matteo's, resting their foreheads together as he takes a moment just to breathe.

“Yeah,” he finally agrees, voice as tender as the look on his face had been, as gentle as the touch of his fingertips on Matteo's jawline. “I suppose we'd better.”

They find each others' lips in a kiss between one heartbeat and the next, easy as breathing, and Matteo hums into it, pleased and comforted by the ready show of affection. It goes on for long enough that they both shift around a little bit to get more comfortable, twisting to face each other and sinking further down onto Matteo's bed.

They're not exactly heated kisses, no clear end goal in mind, but their tongues tangle and David's hand slips up underneath Matteo's jumper and shirt to get to his skin so it's not exactly chaste either.

It just feels good, to feel the heat of David's body so close, his mouth against Matteo's, his hand splayed over Matteo's chest to feel the beating of his heart that Matteo isn't paying attention to in favour of David's newly-potioned, silky-fluffy hair in between his fingers. Matteo loses track of time in the shape of David's mouth, but when David finally pulls back to breathe, he realises his own breath is coming more heavily too, his heartbeat wild. His lips buzz a little and he can feel the flush in his own cheeks as easily as he can see the pink in David's.

“So, where do you want to go?” David asks again, gently brushing a piece of hair out of Matteo's face.

“Haven't really thought about it,” Matteo admits. “I just want to go away with you. Just see what portkeys are available for two tomorrow and just go.”

David grins.

“A little adventure. I like it,” he says. “It's getting a little cold to sleep outside though, so we should probably make sure we have somewhere to sleep before we leave this time.”

Matteo presses his grin against David's mouth, pulling him into another kiss.

“We're wizards, Mr. Schreibner. I'm sure we could think of something,” he says when he pulls back again.

David's cheeks flush a little more and he casts his eyes down for a second before Matteo gives him another kiss.

“But since you're the one who'd have to do all the charms, I can see why you'd want to book a room instead,” he teases.

David laughs and pushes at Matteo's shoulder.

“Excuse me, who says I'd be doing all the work?”

“I just did. Were you not listening?”

David rolls his eyes and gives Matteo another half-hearted push, only to follow him immediately for another kiss. Matteo accepts it easily and grabs David by the back of the neck, pulling him up on top off him when he rolls over to lie on his back. They shuffle around again and Matteo spreads his legs so David can lie between them comfortably, propped up on one of his arms by Mateo's head, fingers of the other hand carding through Matteo's fringe.

“We'll need to know where we're going so we know what to pack,” David says. “Transfigured clothes never sit quite right.”

Matteo hums and nods. “Portkey office doesn't close for another hour. We could pop down, see what they have? Maybe go out for dinner?”

“One might think you're trying to romance me,” David says, brushing a thumb over the apple of Matteo's cheek.

“What do you mean 'try'? Are you telling me it's not working?” Matteo complains, all fake outrage and deep frown on his brow.

David laughs. “No, it's working. I'm practically swooning.”

“Good. That's how I like it,” Matteo says, and leans up for another kiss. David laughs into it but obliges Matteo for a moment.

“I know you meant that sweetly, but it sounded really creepy,” he pulls away to say after only a few seconds.

Matteo snorts a laugh and nods. “Yeah, as soon as I heard it, I wanted to take it back.”

“It's like you're saying you want me to be unconscious always.”

“Don't make it _ worse _ _ ! _”

“Like, do you want me swooning when we have sex?” David teases, laughing at how Matteo covers his face with his hands and groans into them. “Is that what secretly gets you off? The thought of me unconscious?”

“No!” Matteo whines and lifts his hands from his face to wrap his arms around David's shoulders and pull him down so his face pushes into the side of Matteo's neck, muffling any further laughter or teasing.

“Suffocation too! Okay, I see how it is,” David says, squirming around so he doesn't actually suffocate.

Matteo pinches him, making David squawk and reach out to pinch Matteo back. No ten seconds later they're rolling around Matteo's bed scuffling; laughing and wrestling, trying their best to pinch and prod and pull and push at each other.

Matteo puts up what he considers a valiant enough effort for maybe five minutes before he lets David pin him down by the wrists, his knees either side of Matteo's hips.

“I win,” he says with a smug grin.

David laughs and gives his wrists a squeeze.

“Are you sure about that?”

Matteo nods, hair rasping against the pillow case he's lying on.

“My hot-as-fuck boyfriend is pinning me to the bed. How is that not winning?” he asks, just to see the way it melts the brown in David's eyes with heat and watch him lick his lips as he rakes his gaze over Matteo's body.

“By that logic, I win because I've got _my_ hot-as-fuck boyfriend pinned to the bed,” he says.

Matteo hums as if in contemplation.

“That seems reasonable,” he finally says. “Well, then it looks like we're both winning. How about that?”

David rolls his eyes fondly. “Idiot.”

Matteo just smiles up at him, watching the matching grin on David's face soften a little until he leans down for another kiss. Matteo melts into it, basking in the sensations of David being so near. He's realising that he really has missed it. Being with David has always meant _ touch _, whether it be casual or sensual, and they've been drifting apart a little in their mutual despondence and stress without even realising it.

Judging by the way David sighs happily and then sinks down to touch Matteo _ more _, cover his whole body with his own, David is feeling the absence too. And even better – is feeling how good it is to be close again.

Matteo could easily get lost in this, do it for hours, but--

“We should get down to the portkey office though,” he mumbles in between kisses.

David hums, but doesn't stop.

Matteo grins into the next kiss and tries to wriggle his hands free. David only holds him down more firmly in response.

“David,” Matteo says, tries to hold back the breathy excitement that wants to steal into his voice. Who could blame him, though? As already established his hot-as-fuck boyfriend is holding him pinned to the bed and Matteo has always been _very_ into that.

David knows that too, the little shit. Uses it to his advantage at any opportunity. He knows if he keeps kissing Matteo like this, all soft lips and sensual tongue, his bodyheat bleeding into Matteo through both if their clothes, Matteo is going to give in sooner rather than later, and screw the portkey office. Still, Matteo isn't trying particularly hard to stop David, letting his body relax into the bed, luxuriating in the moment.

And then David pulls away again.

"What--?" Matteo tries to ask, staring up at David and his gorgeously flushed cheeks, the way his eyes glitter.

"Portkey office," David says. He's trying for nonchalance, but Matteo can hear the slight tremor in it, lighting a spark of smug satisfaction in his chest.

David hops up from the bed. "Let's go."

Matteo groans like this whole thing wasn't his idea in the first place, and makes a little bit of a show of slowly pushing himself upwards.

"Fine," he sighs, stretching the 'i'.

David watches with that amused-fond smile of his and leads the way out of Matteo's bedroom as soon as he's up. He grabs Matteo's jacket off the hook by the door before he slips into his shoes, and Matteo takes David's for himself.

"Shall we side-along?" David asks, holding out his hand to Matteo.

Matteo nods and steps closer to David, brushing the tip of his nose over his cheek. He can still feel a tiny bit of residual heat there and gives him a quick kiss.

"Don't leave any of my bits behind though," he teases.

David doesn't bother responding, just holds on to his hand more tightly and with a crack and a jolt, they're pulled through to the portkey office.

The attendant looks a little bored and a little resigned when they walk in from the Apparition point, straightening up from her slumped posture half-heartedly.

"Good evening, how may I help you?" she asks, sounding more than a little tired and like she wishes there was nothing she could do for them at all.

Stood behind David's shoulder, Matteo can just see the way David smiles at her, probably full of sympathy for her apparent exhaustion. Not that Matteo can't relate, but he's pretty sure he looks about as bored as she does.

"Hi. We're wondering what kind of portkeys for two you have available for tomorrow," David says.

She blinks.

"What kind?"

"Yeah. Uh, where they're going," David clarifies, scratching at the side of his neck sheepishly.

"Oh," she says, and then grabs a ledger from her rack of identical-looking black ledgers. She flips it open to where a bookmark keeps her page, and Matteo glances down at the letters and numbers noted down, some moving, some staying stubbornly where they are. He has no idea what any of it means, but the attendant sighs, runs her finger over the page in a pattern that probably makes sense and then looks up again.

"The only two places I have left for tomorrow are to Haithabu."

"To where now?" Matteo asks.

The attendant sighs again.

"Haithabu," she says. "Old wizarding village up by the North Sea."

David turns around to exchange a quick look with him. Matteo smiles and shrugs, leaving it up to David. Anywhere is good with him, and he's never been to any of the old, small wizarding villages except for his father's back in Italy and the handful of school trips they took.

David grins back before turning to the attendant again.

"We'll take it."

"Would you like a return trip as well?" she asks.

David nods. "Yeah, please. Sunday night, if possible?"

The attendant nods and jots something down with a pen. The ink turns from red to green when she finishes, and then a duplicate of her writing lifts off the page and lies back down on a little piece of paper she'd put just beside the large ledger.

"That'll be €27.70, please," she says.

Matteo digs his wallet out of his jacket that David's wearing and hands her three ten euro bills. He waits for her to hand back his change and the receipt and then slips the wallet back into the pocket of his jacket. He wonders for a moment how strange this must look to the attendant, like he's just using David's money without asking, but she actually doesn't look like she cares very much at all.

"So, your portkey leaves tomorrow at 5:48 from this office. The portkey room is over there," she explains, gesturing to a door behind Matteo and David. They turn almost as one to follow her line of sight and then back to her when she drones on. "A colleague will be ready to assist you should you need it. The portkey back leaves at 22:37 Sunday night from the local Haithabu office where you'll be arriving. For more information please see the staff at that office. Do you have any questions?"

"None, thank you," David says and takes their portkey information when she holds out the piece of paper that had been copied into earlier.

"No more than two Extended pieces of luggage with no more capacity than 5m3."

"Alright, thanks," Matteo says, just so he won't come off as the rude quiet one.

He can see David smile at her like maybe it'll cheer her up.

"Thank you for your business," she says with a tone of finality that makes Matteo tug on David's sleeve. They both nod at her and then turn around to leave, stepping out into magical Berlin.

"Do you want to eat muggle tonight or magical?" Matteo asks, taking a deep breath of the cold night air. For the first time in a while the cold feels nice, clear, a little bracing, instead of dreary and chilly.

"Magical," David says. "I'm in the mood for those floating ravioli at Giulia's."

Matteo makes a pleased humming noise. "I'm always down for Giulia's."

"I know," David laughs, and links their fingers again. "You're a total cliché when it comes to Italian food."

"It's among the best cuisines ever and anyone who says it's not is lying," Matteo says and falls into step beside David, strolling along the familiar path to Giulia's. At this point Giulia has answered so many of Matteo's curious questions about her dishes, she greets them by name, if she's not stuck in the kitchen.

There are lights hovering over the broad street, all the shop windows filled up with twinkling, glittering charms and glass baubles. Here and there someone's gone the extra mile and added a little music. There's a solstice/Christmas market down at the main square that Matteo's already considering paying a visit for some mulled wine after dinner.

"I'm glad you suggested this," David says into the blue, pulling Matteo's attention back from the shop windows.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I already feel a little… lighter," he says.

Matteo nods. "Yeah, me too. I felt so boxed in by everything. I thought getting away might be nice, even if it's just for the weekend."

"Yeah," David agrees quietly with a nod.

At Giulia's they're greeted by Timo, one of the server's they've gotten to know over the course of their patronage, and he leads them to a table for two, further back in the restaurant so as to escape the noise level, without even asking.

"Do you even need the menu anymore?" he asks a little cheekily, and David laughs.

Matteo grins at him and then takes his seat.

"Is the pollo cacciatore still on the menu?" he asks.

Timo grins and nods, flipping open his little notebook. The auto-quote-pen hovers at the ready. "Of course. It's one of the most popular dishes."

"Perfect. Then I'll have that," he says and then turns to David. "Do you want to share the mushroom bruschetta as an antipasto?"

"Yeah," David says. "And I'll have the ravioli volanti after that, thanks."

Timo checks to see the pen has taken everything down correctly and then turns to them again.

"And what can I get you for drinks?"

"The house red?" David suggests, and Matteo nods.

“A glass each and a bottle of water senza gas?” Timo guesses.

Matteo grins. “It’s almost like we’re here often.”

Timo laughs. “I’ll let Giulia know and be right back with your drinks.”

“Great, thank you,” David says.

Timo nods and turns on his heel, striding off. Matteo watches him weave through the tables and other guests with practiced ease, and then turns back to David when he feels his shoe tap gently against the side of his own.

“Hey, don’t ogle the waiter when I’m right here,” David teases.

Matteo grins and then puts on an expression of what he hopes is remorse. “This isn’t how I wanted you to find out, but… I’m leaving you for Timo.”

David laughs.

“Damn,” he says propping his chin up in one hand, “that was my plan too.”

“Are you saying he played us both?” Matteo gasps, laying a hand over his heart like one of those easily shocked ladies in period films.

David nods gravely. “Looks like it.”

“What a jerk.”

“Hm, yeah,” David agrees, a smile smoothing out his put-on frown. “We’d better stay together then. Can’t let him get away with that.”

Matteo can’t help but smile back. He’s seen enough photos to know exactly how soppy his face can get when looking at David, but he can’t say he really cares. David deserves every little bit of love Matteo can give and more, so if he can read it plainly on Matteo’s face then that’s just as it should be.

“No, you’re right. We should just keep dating to spite him and show him what he’s missing out on,” he says and stretches his arm out across the table so David can reach his hand with his.

“Good plan,” David agrees, running the tips of his fingers across the back of Matteo’s before slotting their fingers together.

Matteo sighs happily and feels his cheeks flush when David obviously catches the noise.

“Love you,” David murmurs and pulls at their linked hands to press a kiss to Matteo’s fingers before setting their hands back down.

“If you let me seat you by the window on Valentine’s, you can have the entire menu for free,” Giulia interrupts, wiping her hands dry on her apron when Matteo looks up and over at her.

“Is that a promise?” he asks.

Giulia laughs. “You two are the best advertising I could hope for. Not even you can eat so much that I won’t come out as the winner there, Matteo.”

“Oh, don’t challenge him, Giulia, I’m the one who’ll have to deal with him if he makes himself sick,” David says, laughing when Matteo turns his offended gaze on him.

“I have self-restraint!” he insists.

“Do you though?” David teases.

Matteo scoffs.

“Just you wait and see,” he threatens, and David blushes a little. That's not how Matteo meant it, but he throws a wink in for good measure anyway.

“Alright, that’s my cue to go,” Giulia says. “I’ve got a new dessert I’m testing, if you’re up for it later.”

“Nothing would delight us more,” Matteo promises, and David beams up at her.

Giulia rolls her eyes at them, but gives each of their shoulders a friendly squeeze before she turns back to the kitchen.

Timo brings over their drinks only a moment or two later and it doesn’t take much longer for their food to start arriving either. It’s delicious as always, cooked with the kind of care and joy you can taste in the food, and they've both always been fans of the way Giulia weaves charms into her dishes.

David watches his ravioli dance their little choreography around their bed of tomato sauce as raptly as ever and Matteo himself has a grand time trying to catch his chicken-shaped chicken as it races around his plate. Hunter-style indeed. When he finally manages to spear it on his fork, it salutes him with one of its little wings and then lies down to be eaten, the charm having run its course.

The dessert Giulia brings out once they’re done with their main courses is a small croquembouche tower that reassembles itself into a different shape every time you pluck one of the little cream puffs off the side. By the time they’ve demolished that too, Matteo does actually feel like he might need David to look after him and pet his hair and make him tea.

“Okay, maybe I don’t have self-restraint,” he sighs and leans back in his chair, putting a hand on his stuffed belly.

David laughs and shakes his head. “Fuck, don’t make me laugh. I’ve had too much food for laughing.”

Giulia beams with pride when they wax poetic about the dessert though and after needling them with detailed questions neither of them are honestly in any condition to answer, she lets them beg off to go pack for their trip. She waves off their attempt to pay for dessert as well and tops it off with two large wrapped ciabatta sandwiches for their trip.

“You’re too good to us, Giulia,” David says while Matteo puts the sandwiches into the Extended pockets of David’s jacket he’s wearing. What with David’s habit of picking up souvenirs from everywhere he goes, he’s long since started putting extension charms on all of his pockets. It’s quite handy, Matteo has to admit.

“Gotta keep two of my best customers happy, eh?” she says with a grin. Matteo’s pretty sure they’re not actually two of her best customers – they don’t have the money to come as often as they’d like, for one – but he guesses that must mean they’re two of her _favourites_ and that’s got to be even better.

They say goodbye to her with kisses to the cheek and wave at Timo when they catch his eye behind the bar. David takes Matteo’s hand as they step back outside into the much colder night.

“Shall we walk a bit before we Apparate?” David suggests.

“Yes, please,” Matteo agrees immediately. “I think if I tried to Apparate right now all of Giulia’s efforts to feed us would be in vain.”

“Gross,” David says but laughs.

They fall into step easily, throwing ideas on what to pack back and forth in easy conversation. In the end, they walk almost the entire way home and on any other night Matteo thinks they would have seen the walk through. It’s only the knowledge that they do need to pack still and then get up early tomorrow morning to catch their portkey that makes him pull David into a darker side-alley to Apparate them home.

After all of their planning – and practice from their summer road trip – packing goes blessedly quickly and they fall into bed together shortly after midnight. Still, when the alarm rings the following morning, Matteo is anything but pleased. He still feels foggy by the time they’ve stumbled their way into clothes and then into the portkey office. The ride to Haithabu makes him dizzy, but doesn’t really wake him either, so David takes his hand and pulls him along after him, looking for a room to rent for tonight.

Haithabu, once Matteo does wake up enough to actually take it in, is a charming little town full of old buildings and water-front cafés and boutiques. The history of the place seeps out of practically every stone, and yet there are children here, young families, thriving businesses. It’s not one of those sleepy old towns that look about ready to turn into a ghost town. It seems to be just as alive now as when it was first founded.

David finds them a charming room in the attic of one of those water-front cafés, with a nice view of the harbour through the admittedly tiny window. Still, there’s a bed and a bathroom and they’re not going to be spending more time here than necessary anyway.

The couple who run the café – Hans-Dieter and Brigitte – are the kind of married couple that belongs in storybooks, the kind that Matteo not-so-secretly aspires for David and him to become at some point down the road. They’ve inherited the café from Hans-Dieter’s grandfather and plan on passing it on to one of their own granddaughters. David’s eyes are wide and glittering as he listens to them share the story of their life and the café, and Matteo’s pretty sure he’s going to be finding traces of them in one of David’s next film projects. They also give them a few tips on what places to visit, so armed with those and Giulia’s sandwiches, they step back out into the morning air.

Because their portkey left _ridiculously early,_ most places are still closed and so Matteo and David walk down along the waterfront first, to the very edge of the harbour where there’s a little pier and some benches. David casts a warming charm on the stone floor and they sit and have breakfast there, eating quietly and looking out over the water.

The last of the sandwich eaten and the wrapper crumpled up in his hand, Matteo takes a deep breath. The salt is tangy in the air and there are a few seagulls screaming overhead. He feels like all the cells in his body settle down listening to the gentle lapping of the waves against the stone pier.

“I love it here,” David says.

Matteo hums and closes his eyes, lying down on his back, legs dangling over the edge of the pier.

“Can we just stay here forever?” he asks, feeling the breeze brush over his skin.

“Yes,” David says and takes his hand, playing with Matteo’s fingers absent-mindedly. “We’ll get a place by the water and commute to Berlin.”

Matteo hums again. “Sounds nice.”

“We’ll just have to get up at five every day,” David goes on.

Matteo can hear the hint of a tease in his voice, but he whines his complaint anyway, just for the way he knows it’ll make David laugh.

“What, you don’t like that part of the plan? We can’t afford daily custom portkeys, Matteo.”

Matteo sighs heavily.

“How much longer until you’re a famous film maker?” he asks.

David laughs. “Wizards don’t even know what film is yet.”

“Which is why you’ll be famous either way. You’ll be the first,” Matteo points out, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” David says, voice deadpan.

Matteo squints his eyes open, bringing his free one up to shield them against the light. David turns to meet his gaze like he could tell. From the way he’s smiling, maybe he could.

Matteo rolls his eyes. “You’ll be amazing.”

David grins back at him and leans down to kiss him, just quickly.

“Thanks. That’s all I wanted to hear.”

“Needy,” Matteo mumbles and lets David pinch his cheek in punishment.

“Anyway, all you need to do is bring electricity into the wizarding world so they can finally join the 21st century and we’ll be set. I won’t even have to try very hard with the films.”

Matteo snorts a laugh. “As if. You, not trying hard? Right.”

“I’m not that much of a perfectionist,” David protests.

Matteo grins to himself and lets it slide. They both know David tends to put 110% of himself into everything he does. Especially his art.

David doesn’t insist any further, but he squeezes Matteo’s fingers in his, earning himself a squeeze in return.

The conversation peters out then, and Matteo can feel himself start to drift off, going into a light doze, lulled by the sound of the sea and the wind, the warmth of David’s charm keeping them warm. He doesn’t know how much time passes, but eventually he can feel David lie down beside him, on his side, and lifts an arm for David to slot under, his head on Matteo’s chest and shoulder.

“We should get up and get going,” David says.

Matteo hums in acknowledgement but doesn’t open his eyes yet.

“In a minute,” he says.

David laughs very quietly and tilts his head to press a kiss to Matteo’s jawline.

“Okay. In a minute.”

Matteo’s pretty sure he drifts off properly that time, but he doesn’t know how long he’s asleep before David wakes him.

“Come on, come one. Places to go, things to do,” he says, extricating himself from Matteo’s arms and getting to his feet.

Matteo sighs and sits up slowly, waiting for the blood to go back to where it belongs, for his heart to catch up with him. He takes David’s offered hand and lets him pull him up from the ground, stumbling into him as he comes to stand again. He’s never been good with getting up, always feels like he falls into sleep so deeply it takes him a while to find his way back.

“Where do you want to go first? The old shipyard maybe?” Matteo asks.

David looks out over the water and then back over the town and nods.

“Yeah, sounds good. We can stroll along the other side of the harbour on the way back. Brigitte said there’s a restaurant out by the old shipyard where we can have lunch.”

“Yeah, okay,” Matteo says and vanishes the wrapping paper left over from Giulia’s sandwiches. “Shall we?”

David lifts the warming spell on the stones they’d been lying on and takes Matteo’s hand again.

“We shall.”

The old shipyard is technically an even older battlefield, from when the Danish vikings first came down to settle and found, to their surprise, some local witches and wizards. Not witches and wizards like they are now, but people doing a lot more magic than the mostly Muggle vikings were used to. At least those Muggle vikings.

Needless to say, a confrontation was had.

David has always been fascinated by the history of magic and how it’s been interacting with Muggles all this time. Matteo has the advantage of having grown up half and half, so he’s always known both sides of the story, though they hadn’t always been presented as equally valid. It came with its own set of challenges, trying to reconcile his father’s culture and version of events with his mother’s, but there’s a spark of wonder and a way to look at magic and see infinite possibilities in David that Matteo doesn’t think he’s ever fully going to have.

Matteo looks at magic like a set of skills he can rehearse and apply. David looks at magic like it’s an open-world sandbox and he’s the only one putting limitations on what’s possible.

“I can’t imagine what it must have been like, when everyone just knew that magic was a real thing,” David says quietly, looking over one of the signs explaining some of the history or the old battlefield that turned into a shipyard when a tentative truce had been struck between Danish and local peoples and eventually turned into a fruitful hub of commerce.

“Do you think everyone just… believed it?” Matteo asks.

David shrugs and looks up from the sign.

“I mean… if Hilda can make flowers bloom in winter, aren’t you just gonna go ‘yep, magic’?”

“Hilda?” Matteo asks with a grin.

David rolls his eyes. “Not the point.”

“I suppose, yeah,” Matteo says. “Probably. But eventually people started questioning it, right?”

David hums and moves on to the next sign. Matteo doesn’t really bother to read them, more fascinated by the old ship-parts and tools on display themselves.

“I guess as science progressed and people got a better understanding of some things, they began to think that all things could eventually be explained and magic simply… doesn’t exist,” David says.

“That’s pretty dumb though. Just because something can be explained doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. And, like, it _is_ a little suspicious that it was mostly women the Muggles got rid of in witch hunts, right? Or, like, anyone who could do things other people couldn’t?”

“And queer people,” David adds.

“Yeah, like. It seems pretty shady, right? Probably not just an honest mistake.”

David snorts a derisive laugh. “I don’t think you can kill that many people by mistake.”

Matteo hums his agreement and leans forward a little to study a little apparatus that seems to be designed for navigational purposes. It’s not a compass, but it has several parts that could move, if the right spell were applied.

“That one’s for measuring water patterns,” David says. “Or at least so the sign says.”

Matteo hums again. Mechanisms of any kind are kind of where Muggle and wizarding world meet, and as such have always fascinated him.

“What do you think the spell is?” David asks.

Matteo grins and looks up at him. “How would I know?”

“It’s your job, isn’t it?” David teases.

“I’m an apprentice, for one. And not one learning historical spells, for another,” Matteo grins.

David sighs. “Making mechanisms work though. That’s basically what you’re going for, so. How do you think it works?”

Matteo turns back to the display and studies it for another moment. “Well, that circle up there is probably the display. Maybe the magic lit it up. I’m thinking if it’s for water patterns it maybe measures depth? Could be useful in shallower waters, so you don’t run aground.”

David moves closer and leans in.

“See those three sticks that can move up and down? Maybe those are the gauges and if you know the right spell, to connect it to the sea and the ship, then turning them into a display aid wouldn’t be so hard.”

David bumps their shoulders together and grins at him when Matteo looks over. “I love the way you look at everything and see puzzles to solve.”

Matteo huffs a laugh. “I love the way you look at everything and see possibilities to create.”

David’s grin turns a little bashful and he moves in to nuzzle his cheek against Matteo’s. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” Matteo says and turns his face a little further to catch David’s mouth in a kiss.

They make their way through the rest of the exhibition slowly and consider going to see the Muggle exhibition in the “deserted” Haithabu a few kilometres over the following day, just to see the other side of the story. At the end of the exhibition space there’s one room dedicated to the old rune stones, the exchange of language between the locals and the Vikings, and their magical use especially. Matteo’s never been into Divination, but he’s pretty sure that there are ways it can be done. Sort of like how Muggles can predict the weather. It’s not 100% accurate and it can change from one moment to the next, but it’s not completely off either. It’s at least a somewhat informed guess.

“I bet Carlos could make use of these,” David says, and Matteo can’t help but laugh.

“Yeah, he’d be getting all sorts of vibes, I’m sure.”

“Maybe we should see if there’s a gift shop,” David suggests.

“Will they work if they’re from a gift shop?” Matteo questions.

David shrugs. “I think it’s more down to the person than the rune stones themselves.”

“True. But if we get Carlos something, we’ll have to get all of them something,” Matteo points out.

David shrugs. “Let’s just go see.”

So they go see.

They do find a set of rune stones, and a miniature replica of some old instrument for Jonas. Abdi they just buy a hat with a moving embroidery of an old ship on it. Abdi’s always happy just to be thought of, and there’s nothing that really stands out for him in particular.

Lunch at the on-site restaurant is fine but nothing to write home about, especially with the memory of Giulia’s sandwiches still somewhat fresh on their minds. Still, they get to sit out by the water again, and Matteo somehow feels like they’ve been here for days instead of just a few hours. Despite them being far from the only visitors, there’s a calm to the whole area that makes Matteo feel settled. Or maybe it’s just that being away from home and their responsibilities has increased Matteo’s capacity to feel calm even in a non-calm environment.

On their way back into town David takes them into what feels like every single shop on the waterfront mile, be it a book shop or a carpenter, so by the time they make it back to Hans-Dieter and Brigitte’s place, Matteo feels ready for a nine hour nap and dinner. Not necessarily in that order.

The café doesn’t offer dinner, so they go back out to find a place to eat, though not before Brigitte shows them how to use the rune stones, telling them all about how her grandmother had taught her and her brother. Apparently there’s still a somewhat lively tradition for them here in Haithabu, even though it’s mostly considered about as accurate as a Oujia board. Which is to say, you’ll find some people swearing up and down they can divine next week’s lottery numbers with them, while most others consider it a children’s toy at best. Either way, Carlos will be glad to get instructions from a local along with them.

After dinner David pulls Matteo along back on another walk to the end of the pier where they’d had breakfast to look at the stars for a bit. This time, Matteo doesn’t even fall asleep until they’re back in their room, cuddled up close and filled to the brim with contentment.

Matteo dreams of measuring the depth of space in between stars while they’re sailing through it like it's a wide open ocean. David insists they can collect the passing stars to use like rune stones, cupping them in the palms of his hands like fireflies.

When he tells David the following morning, he gets that calculating look in his eyes that Matteo knows means he’s filing away an idea to toy with later. He ducks his head to smile to himself. Knowing he’s inspired David always makes him feel oddly self-conscious and pleased a the same time.

After breakfast they decide to go see the Muggle museum and spend their time there trying to figure out which supposedly magical items might actually have been magical, making each other laugh with each outlandish guess. Thankfully it’s quite a noisy place as it is, lots of families with young children, so no one asks them to leave, though a few parents give them pointed looks, like just because they’re no longer children themselves they’re not allowed to have a good time.

Still, they decide to head back to wizarding Haithabu for lunch, picking one of the numerous water-front cafés, taking full advantage of the locale while they still can. That second afternoon they spend browsing David’s favourites of the shops they’d been to yesterday and taking some photos with the magical camera David brought.

And even though Matteo is aware they’ll have to leave that same night, it doesn’t feel like it. Like they have to _leave._ There’s just something about this place that feels like they’re going to come back, or at least like they’d be welcome to do so any time – and not just because Brigitte and Hans-Dieter literally tell them they’re welcome to come back any time.

Whatever it is, it makes Matteo’s steps feel light when the night approaches their departure time and they’ve said their goodbyes to their hosts, David’s hand in one of his and their Extended travel bag in the other.

They’re the only ones going back at that time of night, the portkey office attendant handing them a ticket to Berlin, wishing them a good journey and hoping to welcome them back soon.

David takes the ticket from her with a quiet “thank you” and checks his watch before holding the ticket out to Matteo.

“Ready to go home?” he asks.

Matteo turns to look out through the window at the old buildings and the faint glittering lights of the waterfront, and nods. He shoulders the bag and grabs the ticket with one hand and loops the other arm around David’s waist.

They can come back. Or go somewhere else.

Suddenly, going back home feels exciting again.

“Ready,” he says just as the time ticks over into 22:37 and they’re whisked away.

** The End **


End file.
